Recommended Beijing Winter Tour

Giant Panda

Overview of Giant PandasThe
giant panda known as panda bear or simply panda, is a bear native to
south central China. It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive
black patches around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body.
The name "giant panda" is sometimes used to distinguish it from the
unrelated red panda. Though it belongs to the order Carnivora, the giant
panda's diet is over 99% bamboo. Giant pandas in the wild will
occasionally eat other grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of
birds, rodents, or carrion. In captivity, they may receive honey, eggs,
fish, yams, shrub leaves, oranges, or bananas along with specially
prepared food.

The giant panda lives
in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan, but also
in neighbouring Shaanxi and Gansu. As a result of farming,
deforestation, and other development, the giant panda has been driven
out of the lowland areas where it once lived.

The
giant panda is a conservation reliant vulnerable species. A 2007 report
showed 239 pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27
outside the country. As of December 2014, 49 giant pandas lived in
captivity outside China, living in 18 zoos in 13 different countries.
Wild population estimates vary; one estimate shows that there are about
1,590 individuals living in the wild, while a 2006 study via DNA
analysis estimated that this figure could be as high as 2,000 to 3,000.
Some reports also show that the number of giant pandas in the wild is on
the rise. In March 2015, Mongabay stated that the wild giant panda
population had increased by 268, or 16.8%, to 1,864 individuals. In
2016, the IUCN reclassified the species from "endangered" to
"vulnerable".

Size & descriptionAlso
called great pandas, parti-colored bears, bamboo bears and white bears,
giant pandas are distinguished from other pandas by their large size
and black-and-white coloring.

Giant
pandas live up to their name. They are 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5 meters)
tall and weigh up to 300 lbs. (136 kilograms), according to the National
Geographic, about the same as an American black bear. By comparison,
their distant relatives, red pandas, are only 20 to 26 inches (50 to 65
cm) tall and weigh 12 to 20 lbs. (5.4 to 9 kg).

HabitatIn
the wild, giant pandas are only found in the remote, mountainous
regions of central China, in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces,
according to the National Zoo. In this area, there are cool, wet bamboo
forests that are perfect for the giant panda's needs. Giant pandas make
their dens from hollowed-out logs or stumps of conifer trees found
within the forest.

Geographic DistributionGiant
pandas live in a few mountain ranges in central China’s Sichuan,
Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. They once lived in lowland areas, but
farming, forest clearing, and other development now restrict giant
pandas to the mountains.

Social StructureAdult
giant pandas are generally solitary, but they do communicate
periodically through scent marks, calls, and occasional meetings.
Offspring stay with their mothers from one and a half to three years.